The invention relates to a manicure capsule according to the preamble of claims 1 and 4.
When fingernails are cut, there is the problem of the fingernails flying off in an uncontrolled manner as they are cut. The same applies for cutting toenails and skin or horny tissue in the region of the fingers and toes. This necessitates additional effort to be made as far as cleaning is concerned. Furthermore, it is also undesirable from the point of view of hygiene. This is a particular problem for elderly and also visually impaired individuals who have difficulty in finding the scattered horny-tissue material again and disposing of the same. For bedridden individuals, it is particular unpleasant if the cut-off horny tissue drops onto the bed.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,956,915 has already disclosed a manicure capsule of the type mentioned in the introduction which, on the side which is located opposite the finger-insertion opening, has an opening for the insertion of nail clippers. The disadvantage with this known manicure capsule, however, is that its area of use is very restricted and it can only be used for nail clippers, and not nail-scissors.
The object of the invention is to provide a manicure capsule which is suitable for cutting nails using scissors, can be used, as far as possible, universally and allows cut-off horny tissue to be collected reliably.
This object is achieved according to the invention by the features of claims 1 and 4. Advantageous embodiments of the invention are described in the rest of the claims.
According to Patent claim 1, the clippings-collecting container has at least one lateral nail-scissors-insertion opening. That end section of the clippings-collecting container which encloses the finger-insertion opening is designed as a retaining section for a retaining part which can be fastened releasably on the end section and is intended for at least one pair of scissors.
By way of the lateral nail-scissors-insertion opening, nail scissors can be inserted into the clippings-collecting container, transversely to the longitudinal direction of the manicure capsule, such that the fingernails can easily be cut from all sides. For this purpose, the nail-scissors-insertion opening is dimensioned such that the scissors can be pivoted correspondingly in order to cut the fingernail with the appropriate rounding. The pushed-in scissors also act, at the same time, as a handle for stabilizing the manicure capsule, it being possible for the manicure capsule to be moved by means of the scissors should this be necessary in order to obtain the optimum cutting position. The nails are collected in the clippings-collecting container and can be specifically disposed of once the manicuring has been completed. The fingernails are reliably prevented from flying off in an uncontrolled manner. It is particularly advantageous that that end section of the clippings-collecting container which encloses the finger-insertion opening is designed as a retaining section for a retaining part which can be fastened releasably on the end section and is intended for at least one pair of scissors since, as a result, at least one pair of scissors and expediently also other manicuring implements, for example an additional file, can be fastened on the retaining part and inserted into the finger-insertion opening at least by way of their front end, with the result that, in this case, the manicure capsule can also be used as a case which protects the manicuring implements and fixes them in place. In this case, the manicure capsule thus serves as a space-saving storage and retaining container for the manicuring implements.
It should be noted that the use of the term xe2x80x9cfingernailsxe2x80x9d is not intended to indicate in any way a restriction to this type of horny tissue. Rather, the effects and advantages achieved by the invention also apply in the same way to cutting toenails and skin parts and to filing using a nail file in the region of fingers and toes. One advantage of the subject matter of the invention is precisely that it can be used universally and can readily be designed such that it is suitable both for fingers and for toes.
According to an advantageous embodiment, the retaining part for at least one pair of scissors is designed as a retaining stopper which can be plugged into the end section or a retaining cap which can be plugged onto the end section. On account of its longitudinal extent, a retaining part shaped in this way provides for the retaining stopper or the retaining cap to be seated firmly on the clippings-collecting container. Furthermore, such retaining stoppers or retaining caps are cost-effective and easy to produce.
Secure fixing of the manicuring implements in the retaining part is achieved in that the at least one pair of scissors and, if appropriate, also additional nail files are plugged into corresponding slits of the retaining part. These slits may be designed such that the manicuring implements are retained in the slit region solely by the elastic clamping force.
According to Patent claim 4, the clippings-collecting container has at least one lateral nail-scissors-insertion opening. That end section of the clippings container which encloses the finger-insertion opening is designed as a retaining section for a retaining part which can be fastened releasably on the end section and is intended for securing the clippings-collecting container on the finger.
In this embodiment, the lateral nail-scissors-insertion opening, in turn, provides the same advantages as in the first-mentioned embodiment. However, in this case, that end section of the clippings-collecting container which encloses the finger-insertion opening serves for accommodating a retaining part for securing the clippings-collecting container on the finger, with the result that the manicure capsule can be fastened releasably on the finger. This avoids the situation where the manicure capsule slips off from the finger during cutting. Furthermore, this last-mentioned retaining part may readily be designed such that it additionally prevents cut-off fingernails from escaping accidentally through the finger-insertion opening.
There is advantageously provided in the clippings-collecting container an encircling clippings-retaining bead which projects radially inward from the container wall and bounds the collecting section in the direction of the end section. Said clippings-retaining bead prevents the cut-off horny tissue from escaping accidentally through the finger-insertion opening during cutting. It is particularly advantageous here that such a clippings-retaining bead is very easy and cost-effective to produce.
The embodiments of claims 7 and 8 allow the manicure capsule to be retained reliably on the finger and, at the same time, provides a sealed termination of the finger-insertion opening during cutting.
The embodiment according to claim 9 provides the advantage of very easy and cost-effective production.
It is also possible to provide a hollow fixing stopper which can be plugged into the end section and axially secures the retaining part for securing the clippings-collecting container in the end section.
The embodiment according to claim 11 provides the advantage of easy and cost-effective production and of easy exchangeability of the elastic band.
The clippings-collecting container is advantageously provided with a magnifying glass on its top side and/or underside. This allows the part of the nail which is to be cut to be seen particularly clearly.
In its end region which is located opposite the end section, the clippings-collecting container advantageously has an opening which can be closed by means of a closure stopper. This embodiment provides the advantage that the clippings can very easily be emptied in the forward direction. This is even possible in this embodiment without the manicure capsule being removed from the finger.
The clippings-collecting container advantageously has two diametrically opposite lateral nail-scissors-insertion openings. This means that the manicure capsule can easily be used by both left-handed and right-handed individuals. Furthermore, the selection of the most favorable insertion side for the scissors depends on whether it is the nails of the left hand or of the right hand which are to be cut.
It is particularly advantageous if the clippings-collecting container has a container depression adjoining the nail-scissors-insertion opening laterally. This increases the freedom of movement, i.e. the pivoting capacity, of the scissors and ensures that the scissors can be moved into any necessary position.
The nail-scissors-insertion opening is advantageously closed by an elastic covering part which has a central insertion opening for a manicuring implement. Such an elastic covering part provides the advantage that the scissors are guided in the nail-scissors-insertion opening, i.e. on the manicure capsule, during cutting. This means that the scissors can be guided along the finger nail in a smooth and controlled manner. The scissors serve at the same time here as a stabilizing handle.
Although the nail-scissors-insertion opening is expediently round or oval, it may also comprise an elongate lateral window which is closed by a bristle or lamella screen or else by an elastic rubber or plastic part containing a longitudinal cut. In this case, the scissors can be advanced along the capsule wall rather than the latter acting as a pivot axis.
The clippings-collecting container advantageously has a push-in nail-clippers compartment which is accessible from the front side of said container and is bounded, on the underside, by the base of the clippings-collecting container and by a leg of the nail clippers themselves and, on the top side, by a partition plate which extends obliquely downward from the tip of the clippings-collecting container to the bottom border of the end section. This provides an additional push-in compartment in which it is possible, on the one hand, to store nail clippers and, on the other hand, to collect the clipped-off horny tissue.